As each week goes by, a playoff berth is looking more and more realistic for the Washington Nationals.

The pessimistic D.C. sports fan in me always errs on the side of caution when it comes to expecting postseason production out of the local teams. For the past two decades, the Redskins average one playoff appearance every four years. The Capitals have turned second round playoff appearances into a common occurrence over the past five years. Advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals has been another task altogether. The Wizards had a good run by tinkering with the first round several times in the mid-2000’s prior to Gilbert Arenas’ firearm catastrophe. D.C. United has been Washington’s most successful pro sports franchise since their inception in 1996 but given the level of popularity of soccer in the area in contrast to the “big four” sports, that success doesn’t resonate quite like the rest.